On May 16, 2012, hours after an article was printed in which adjunct lecturer Sissy Bradford criticized the university, Bradford was notified by interim School of Arts and Sciences William S. Bush that she was not being offered any courses to teach in for the fall 2012 semester. In February 2012, however, Bradford had been assigned four course sections, and documents including an April 2012 email from Bush confirm that the university had intended that she teach the courses. Bradford had previously criticized the placing of a cross on a tower at the campus entrance, and had expressed concerns about her safety to university officials after receiving angry emails and letters. FIRE is investigating Bradford’s dismissal due to the likelihood that the university unconstitutionally retaliated against her for her expression.

By Benjamin Wermund at Houston Chronicle When Nicole Sanders brought a couple of signs to campus to recruit for the Young Americans for Liberty chapter she was trying to start at Blinn College, she attracted plenty of attention – but not the sort she wanted. Sanders and a couple of friends were demonstrating for “campus carry” gun legislation at the Brenham community college; they also held a sign showing opposition to President Barack Obama. Sanders said a school administrator and three uniformed, armed campus police officers told the students that she and her friends would need “special permission” to display […]

Last fall, Sissy Bradford, an adjunct instructor who taught criminology at Texas A&M University-San Antonio, questioned why crosses were being placed near the public university’s entrance. Last month, she was informed that the university would not offer her any courses to teach in the fall semester. Bradford insists there is a connection, but university officials deny any link. Though critics in online message boards have accused Bradford, who is Jewish, of being intolerant of Christianity, she said that is not the case. “I think I’m the only instructor these students ever had who required them to know passages from the Bible,” […]

Over the summer, FIRE weighed in on the case of Sissy Bradford, an instructor who had taught in the sociology and criminology departments at Texas A&M University–San Antonio (TAMU–SA) before being abruptly notified in May that she was no longer assigned the fall slate of classes she had been scheduled to teach. Bradford’s termination attracted considerable press, and for good reason: The timing of the decision was highly suspect. Bradford was notified of her termination within hours of the publication of an article in The Current, a San Antonio weekly paper, in which Bradford criticized the university’s handling of earlier […]

As I wrote recently, FIRE has been monitoring the case of Sissy Bradford, a lecturer in criminology at Texas A&M University-San Antonio (TAMU-SA) who was suspiciously relieved of her next semester’s teaching duties. Why is it suspicious? Well, because Bradford was let go within hours of the publication of an article that aired her criticisms of the university for its response to her worries for her safety. As I wrote—and as the documentation clearly illustrates—the timeline of events, coupled with Bradford’s clear expectations of teaching a full load of courses in the coming fall semester, made TAMU-SA’s actions look questionable […]

The story of the dismissal of Texas A&M University-San Antonio (TAMU-SA) lecturer Sissy Bradford has garnered much attention—and for good reason. Within hours of the publication of an article in which Bradford criticized the university’s handling of threats against her, Bradford was informed that she would not be teaching at the university for the coming fall semester. Is this revenge for speaking out? You be the judge, but it sure looks like it. Since 2010, Bradford has lectured in TAMU-SA’s sociology and criminology departments, teaching three or four course sections per semester. Last fall, she became a target of criticism […]